Information Literacy Skills Training in Canadas Public Libraries

1
Information Literacy Skills Training in Canadas
Public Libraries

• Heidi Julien
• School of Library Information Studies
  University of Alberta
• Presentation to Quebec Library Association Annual
  Conference
• May 4, 2007

2
The Study

• Research Questions
• How do public library users experience the
  Internet?
• How have they obtained their information literacy
  skills training?
• What is the role of the public library in
  developing Canadians information literacy
  skills?
• Definition of IL
• skills needed to find, retrieve, analyze, and use
  information (ACRL, 2006)

3
Methods

• National survey of public libraries
• Library Information Science Research 27(3),
  2005, 281-301.
• Semi-structured interviews with 25 public library
  customers in Fall 2004 at 5 public libraries in
  Canada
• Observations of users of public Internet access
  computers
• Interviews with 28 public library staff at the 5
  libraries

4
National Survey Results

• IL training not a priority in public libraries,
  though survey respondents strongly agree that
  this is a legitimate role for the public library
• A minority of public libraries are assuming major
  responsibility for development of IL skills among
  Canadians
• Need for more resources to assume more
  responsibility
• dedicated funding
• trained staff
• training space

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Interview/Observation PhaseThe Libraries

• Different regions of Canada (the west, central
  Canada, and the east coast)
• a main branch of an urban public library in a
  city of about 2,000,000 persons
• a main branch of an urban public library in a
  city of about 1,000,000 persons
• a library in a smaller city of 75,000 persons
• a library in a small town of less than 1,000
  persons
• a public library housed within a community centre
  on a small First Nations reserve serving a
  community of less than 100 persons

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How are the public Internet access computers used?

• primarily as communication tools (email, bulletin
  boards, forums, chat rooms, dating services,
  instant messaging)
• to view or listen to an online news source
• entertainment uses were also important (accessing
  information about entertainment, or entertainment
  products such as games or music videos)
• at three of the libraries, visiting foreign
  language web sites (including ethnic community
  discussion forums) was also a popular use

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Dedicated teaching classroom
9
Teaching space
10
Teaching classroom
11
Public Internet access area
12
Public Internet access area
13
The Physical Space

• customers are not encouraged by the physical
  surroundings to inhabit the physical space in
  which those computers are located
• uncomfortable stools, or no seating at all is
  common, and little privacy is afforded
• one library had installed privacy screens on the
  computer monitors
• two sites had dedicated space for training
  purposes

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Who are the Internet users in public libraries?

• more men than women
• most appear to be under 35 years of age
• in the large urban centers, customers represented
  a diversity of ethnicities and visible minorities
  were proportionally over-represented
• residents, visitors, and travelers

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Who was interviewed?

• 13 females, 12 males, of various ages
• mean annual income was lower than Canadas
  average
• 10 of 25 participants reported an annual income lt
  20,000
• 5 customers had home Internet access
• 10 had Internet access elsewhere (e.g., work, a
  seniors or community centre, Internet cafés)

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Why did they use the library computers?

• because they provide Internet access (n11)
• to access email (n6)
• because the location is convenient (n3)
• because they want to conduct job searches (n3)
• only 1 customer mentioned the ability to ask
  staff for help
• 8 had home computer 13 did not

17
Are customers confident in their skills when
using the Internet?

• 16 feel very confident
• 7 feel somewhat confident (all females)
• 2 feel not confident

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Are customers information literate?

• 13 say yes
• 8 are ambivalent
• 4 say no

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What skills do they claim to have mastered?

• evaluation
• searching
• web design
• tendency to equate IT literacy with information
  literacy

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What skills still need development?

• keyboarding
• database searching
• patience
• learning a wider variety of sources
• learning specific software packages
• One woman said, I always feel that Im not good
  enough and I should make more effort and I want
  to be betterso I will never feel really
  accomplished.

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Are poor skills a barrier to efficient/effective
information access?

• majority (15) say no
• 6 say yes

22
Where did participants develop their current
skill set?

• 11 indicated that they were self-taught
• 4 participants had received training in a school
  setting
• 4 got training in a university or college setting
• 4 were trained by family members
• 2 had workplace training
• 1 was trained by a friend
• 1 mentioned the public library as a source of
  training

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How do users experience being information
literate?

• Nine of 25 customers reported feeling nothing
  special about being information literate. These
  participants made comments such as
• Doesnt boost my self-esteem
• Part of everyday life like brushing your teeth
• Its just another tool used around the home
• For my age group its probably pretty normalIve
  just grown up with it
• I dont feel very proud or anything like that

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How do users experience being information
literate?

• The ten customers reporting positive feelings
  used phrases such as
• Its a lot nicer than not
• I think Im in control
• Im just not easily coercedI have a pretty
  good idea to watch out and be aware
• Confident
• Really pleased
• Really proud
• Its a sense of empowerment
• Its exclusive
• You are informed

25
Where would participants like to get more
training?

• 11 of 25 would like to take further training
• 6 would prefer to take such training in a school,
  university or community college setting
• 5 indicated that the library might offer useful
  training (prompted)

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What kind of training is helpful?

• Hands-on
• Offered within a coherent and logical program (so
  people who need to start at the beginning may do
  so)
• Offered by instructors who have
• Training skills
• Resources
• Interest

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Interviews with librarians

• Training is a public need
• Public libraries have a role (part of lifelong
  learning)
• Library staff often identify themselves as
  teacher/agent of empowerment
• Library staff also feel theyre a public parent

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Challenges expressed by staff

• broader societal challenges
• narrowing the digital divide
• increasing role of infotainment
• institutional challenges within libraries
• need to prioritize and market IL training
• infrastructural problems within library buildings
• technology
• pedagogical challenges related to training
• training staff for the teaching role

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What is the role for Canadas public libraries in
training citizens in information literacy skills?

• There is considerable need
• Citizens outside a postsecondary context have few
  training opportunities
• Experience using computers may develop
  confidence, but not IL skills
• IL skills are fundamental to successful
  information seeking and use in our digital
  society (for citizenship, personal
  decision-making)
• IL skills increase sense of community, of
  self-efficacy

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Conclusions

• Currently most public libraries play a relatively
  small role
• There is ample potential, but resources are a
  significant barrier
• Libraries and customers may need convincing

31
Acknowledgments

• The library customers and staff who participated
  in interviews
• The public libraries who allowed us to visit
• Research Assistants
• Claire Banton
• Reegan Breu
• Cameron Hoffman
• Sarah Polkinghorne
• Ina Smith
• Michelle Whitehead
• Funding by Social Sciences Humanities Research
  Council of Canada, SRG 410-2003-004